Bleach [15-18] (Patreon)

Chapter 15 Two-Faced and Mirror Reflection

Though it's a bit self-serving, well… if he could help Rangiku recover, maybe he could earn Ichimaru Gin's favor.

If it's for Gin's [Viper], he can accept losing a few soul fragments.

Hmm, later.

He and Gin aren't close yet, and most importantly, he's too weak right now.

At least wait until he learns Bankai.

They kept drinking and eating until after eleven. When Yoshio went to settle the bill, he found the tab came to 520,000.

Goddamn that's pricey!

Nearly two months' salary gone—counting his new Ninth Seat pay at that.

He compared Seireitei prices to his previous life's—this meal would be a bit over 5,000 usd.

Eh, not bad. It's for boosting favorability and for his future strength—worth it.

Fifth Division members left one after another until only Yoshio and a slightly flushed Rangiku remained.

Rangiku had a bit too much—reeking of alcohol—then patted Yoshio on the shoulder.

 "Yoshi, you did reaaal good."

 Yoshio's face darkened. "You're drunk."

 "I'm not drunk!" Rangiku laughed, patting his shoulder even harder. "From now on, I've got your back. If anything comes up, come to Tenth Division and find me!"

 "Got it, got it. You've said that a hundred times—so naggy!" Yoshio pouted, watching Rangiku off.

He turned to head home when a man appeared before him.

 "Are you… a Fifth Division officer?"

The man wore a gorgeous kimono and a straw hat. The outfit was so conspicuous that Yoshio knew who he was right away.

And not many in the Seireitei could afford that kimono. Yoshio's original self had looked up the price—3.3 million.

Plenty could pull together that much money, but few would spend it on clothes.

In Seireitei, aside from low-ranking nobles in business, that leaves the upper nobles and the Five Great Noble Clans.

So the man's identity was obvious.

"Captain Shunsui?!"

 Yoshio said in surprise.

It was the Eighth Division Captain, Shunsui Kyōraku.

 Yoshio glanced and saw Shunsui's soul ability: ["Two-Faced."]

 ["Two-Faced: When doing something contrary to your outward persona, your spiritual pressure increases dramatically."]

Heh, truly "two-faced."

On the surface, Shunsui looks laid-back and not eager to fight, but in reality he's ruthless. Once he decides to battle, he'll do anything to kill the enemy.

Starrk was fooled by this old fox's façade, thinking Shunsui was his type. Shunsui opened with Kageoni and a backstab, nearly halving Starrk's life in one strike.

 Yoshio sees nothing wrong with that—this is war. If you fuss over pointless dignity and restraint, that's childish.

Of course, Yoshio wants that ability, but he and Shunsui aren't close.

Shunsui looked a bit embarrassed.

 "Ah, you recognized me. But even so, I'll still say this: next time there's an event like this, could you invite me?"

"???"

 Yoshio's eyes turned into little anime dots. He said in surprise, "Captain Shunsui, you…"

 "You're an embarrassment!"

Before he finished, a woman in shihakushō suddenly appeared and bonked Shunsui on the head, scolding angrily,

 "As a captain, how can you make such a shameful request of another squad's officer?!"

Yoshio knew this was Ise Nanao. Her soul ability is called ["Mirror Reflection."]

 ["Mirror Reflection: Generates a mirror at your fingertip that can reflect the opponent's attack."]

This should be related to her family's hereditary sacred treasure, the Shinken Hakkyōken—after all, it's a sword that reflects divine power.

He wants this ability too!

Great—these two are friends I'm definitely making!

Watching the two of them like a comedy sketch, Yoshio couldn't help saying, "Um… Captain Shunsui, Lieutenant Ise, you two are…"

Ise Nanao cleared her throat. "It's nothing. We have business to attend to, so we'll be going."

Before leaving, Shunsui shot Yoshio a look, signaling him to call next time there's a drink-up, then was dragged off by Nanao.

Unexpectedly seeing such a scene before heading home, Yoshio chuckled and shook his head, then returned home.

How to put it—at this point in time, relations between the Gotei 13 squads aren't that good.

There's little interaction between squads. Someone like Rangiku, who often drinks with other squads, is rare.

Normally, squads barely know each other; they might not even know who the other captain is.

Yoshio now vows to change the Gotei 13! He'll become the popular guy of the Gotei—men too, not just women!

If possible, he wants to befriend Hollows and Quincies as well! As long as someone has a soul ability, they're a potential friend!

Humming a little tune, Yoshio went home and set his house as his safe house.

Instantly, he felt much more relaxed.

Not truly relaxed, but psychologically so. He'd been under the gaze of a crowd; now that no one was watching, he naturally felt lighter.

…

Back home, Yoshio took out his Zanpakutō.

Or rather, it can't be called a Zanpakutō yet—it's still an Asauchi.

In theory, he'd need several more years of nurturing the Asauchi before it can Shikai and truly become his Zanpakutō.

This process starts when every student enrolls. Quick ones might achieve Shikai by graduation; slow ones might take decades.

Under normal circumstances, Yoshio would spend 20–30 years to gradually learn his Zanpakutō's name, achieve Shikai, and then become a seat officer—done.

But now he has Tōshirō Hitsugaya-level talent—so it's different.

After activating the ["Child of Kirin"] skill, even the rate he infuses his spiritual essence to nurture the Asauchi increased noticeably.

Plus his previous ten years of nurturing, he feels he can hear the Zanpakutō's voice in his heart already.

Chapter 16 A Mission Arrives

Yoshio sat cross-legged with the Zanpakutō resting across his lap.

He closed his eyes. Even though he'd drunk quite a bit, his mind was crystal clear in this moment.

Vaguely, he seemed to hear a voice—the voice of his Zanpakutō!

[ "…My name is…"]

The voice came and went, now near, now far—sometimes whispering by his ear, sometimes shouting from a mountain peak down to the ants below.

 Yoshio tried to grasp it, but couldn't.

My name is…

Rumble…

As it spoke the name, the sky seemed to thunder; the roaring drowned the name out.

Yoshio slowly opened his eyes.

Though it felt brief, an hour and a half had passed outside.

After all that time, he only felt a step closer to Shikai.

But it's not enough to fully release the Asauchi yet!

In theory, life-and-death battles accelerate this process, but shinigami spend most of their time in Seireitei—where do you find such battles?

Sometimes you notice something odd: before Kurosaki Ichigo arrived, Seireitei barely changed for hundreds or even thousands of years.

Then Ichigo shows up and those captains who hadn't progressed in decades suddenly started power-leveling like crazy.

This isn't strange.

Pure training grows you slowly; orthodox training is far inferior to high-intensity battle.

Especially battles where even your soul risks annihilation.

When a soul faces the crisis of vanishing, spiritual pressure rises easily, so every shinigami grows after a life-or-death fight.

After Ichigo came, the Gotei 13 finally started fighting continuously in the true sense. With each battle, not only Ichigo but the Gotei members progressed.

If Yoshio wants to power up quickly now, he needs to consider battles of that intensity.

Even with the [Child of Kirin] skill, matching Hitsugaya's growth only gives him captain-level reiatsu by the start of the plot.

That's not enough for him.

He needs to become stronger.

And he knows he'll have a chance to go to war.

Aizen, that guy…

Has taken an interest in him.

Yoshio's heart sank.

He was made Ninth Seat today—though not a high seat, it still proves his earlier guess was spot on.

Aizen really has his eye on him.

Metastacia was sent to deal with him, and after he dispatched Metastacia with ease, Aizen's interest only grew.

So he placed him in the Ninth Seat.

Once you're targeted by someone like that, the future won't be smooth sailing.

…

…

But unexpectedly, for several months afterward, Aizen didn't have him do anything.

Which gave him time to grow—first, by building good relationships with people in his squad, then with the Four from Shin'ō Academy and with Rangiku and Shuhei.

As for Shunsui Kyōraku…

He'd told Rangiku and Shuhei about Shunsui. Shuhei was a bit reserved, but Rangiku casually said she'd already had drinks with Shunsui several times.

So later he also secretly invited Shunsui a few times, but favorability rose very slowly. Even now, Shunsui's favorability toward him is only thirty.

So Yoshio stopped counting on that captain. No wonder this old guy has lived for centuries—his heart's walls are thick.

Over these months, he raised Shuhei's favorability to 79—just shy of 80.

No helping it—the higher it goes, the harder it is to raise.

Leaps like Hitsugaya's to eighty are rare.

Just when he thought his peaceful life would continue, at year's end, he received orders at the squad.

 "In North Rukongai, District 62 'Kagarashi,' there's been a large-scale disappearance of souls—suspected reappearance of the Soul Disappearance Case from seventy years ago!"

 "Ninth Division shinigami have already gone, but the Head Captain is concerned, so our Fifth Division will dispatch another unit."

Sixth Seat Tanimoto Toru patted Yoshio's shoulder lightly. "Don't worry too much. It's your first mission as an officer, but with Lieutenant Ichimaru there, nothing will go wrong."

It's precisely because he's there that I'm worried.

 Yoshio glanced at Gin's squinting eyes—he couldn't read what the man was thinking.

To say this mission wasn't arranged by Aizen—who'd believe that?

The Soul Disappearance Case—that's Aizen's handiwork, isn't it?

And District 62—that's where Gin and Rangiku come from, and where Aizen used to collect souls!

Well then, it's coming at last?

Another probe by Aizen—or rather…

A game?

This time, the Fifth Division support team included Lieutenant Ichimaru Gin; the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Ninth Seats; plus more than sixty Fifth Division members.

You could call this a pretty luxe lineup.

But this is to address a case that led to several captains' "Hollowfication" sixty to seventy years ago. Even if it's only a possibility, it's enough for the Gotei 13 to take it seriously.

"Are we departing now?"

 Yoshio asked, outwardly nervous.

 "Yes," Tanimoto Toru nodded. "Let's go. Lieutenant Ichimaru should already be waiting."

Yoshio followed Taniimoto to the rally point. Ichimaru Gin was sitting on some steps, greeting the arriving shinigami leisurely.

 "Don't worry, everyone. With me here, you won't be in any danger."

The Fifth's members collectively sighed in relief. Taniimoto called out, "With Lieutenant Ichimaru here, even if Kisuke Urahara—the mastermind of the original case—were still around, it'd be no problem!"

 "Yeah, I hear Lieutenant Ichimaru has already mastered Bankai. As soon as a captain's post opens up, he can take command of another squad."

 "Lieutenant Ichimaru's a real genius—they say he graduated from Shin'ō in just a year!"

People chatted excitedly. The Fifth Division adores Aizen, and by extension they also trust the sly-looking Lieutenant Gin.

 Yoshio joined in the chatter, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw Ichimaru Gin squinting with a smile…

Looking at him!

Chapter 17: Game Master

The souls in East Rukongai 62 have vanished, so they need to pass through the East Gate, Blue Stream Gate.

The gatekeeper of Blue Stream Gate is named Kaiwan. Yoshio took a look—he has a soul ability too.

His soul ability is "Entranced Illusionist," which lets himself fall into an illusionary hypnosis state. Useful—though it puts himself under an illusion, it can still be handy when necessary.

Mm, another potential friend!

But he definitely has no time to befriend Kaiwan now. As soon as their squad of Shinigami passed through Blue Stream Gate, they continued swiftly east.

It's quite a long trek from the 5th Division to East Rukongai 62—one day might not even be enough.

Considering they might encounter battle upon reaching District 62 "Kagarashi," they needed to rest somewhere along the way.

When night was about to fall, they pitched tents in the wild; at this point Yoshio became even more cautious.

Last time, it was Muguruma Kensei who was attacked while camped; he figured it could play out the same way this time.

But last time Aizen made such a big move to deal with Urahara Kisuke and several Captain-level Shinigami. This time just for him?

That's too much, isn't it?

 Yoshio clicked his tongue, then greeted Tanimoto Toru.

 "Tanimoto, is it our turn on watch now?"

Of course the whole team couldn't rest at once—someone had to patrol.

 Tanimoto waved his hand. "Nope, you're paired with Fujita."

The Lieutenant plus four seated officers were split into three rotating night-watch teams: the 4th and 9th seats together, the 5th and 6th seats together, and Ichimaru Gin alone.

Of course that's just the seated officers; each pair led some rank-and-file Shinigami.

 Yoshio's watch partner was the 4th Seat of the 5th Division, Satoru Fujita. Yoshio was a bit disappointed—he didn't much like Fujita's ability.

Fujita's soul ability is "Sleep On Command"—if he wants to sleep, he can instantly fall asleep.

Damn it, what use is that?!

It's not like I have insomnia!

Though if someone did, they'd probably crave that ability…

But…

Tonight he really had no interest in farming favorability; he had to be cautious and keep an eye on the surroundings so he didn't die inexplicably.

By the campfire in front of the tents, Yoshio sat by the blazing flames, ready to use Black Sun.

For months, Yoshio had been injecting about half his spiritual power into [Black Sun] almost daily. With that constant infusion, its power had become considerable.

But he only had one shot in him.

If only he could permanently acquire [Special Beam Cannon].

 Yoshio glanced toward a tent—that's where Tanimoto Toru was. Tanimoto's favorability toward him was already high, but not yet 80.

Of course, besides [Black Sun], he had another offensive skill—[Fireball]—but he wasn't sure how destructive it really was.

Lately, he had basically collected all the team's soul abilities, even if they were one-time use; you never know when they might come in handy.

Just then, Yoshio looked at his skill list and froze.

He noticed the ["Game Master"] skill was glowing.

That meant it was in an "activatable" state.

Game?

He wasn't playing a game right now.

Sitting by the fire, he frowned—then suddenly his heart stirred!

Game?!

Right, he wasn't playing a literal game, but…

Isn't he inside a game Aizen set up?!

What is a game?

If the organizer considers it a game and the participants consider it a game, then it damn well is a game!

Aizen must have arranged this chessboard with a gamer's mindset, and he himself thought of it as Aizen's little game.

Then this operation really is a game, isn't it?

Perfect!

 Yoshio suppressed his excitement and activated ["Game Master."]

In an instant, everything around him changed.

The world looked renewed. He looked at the surrounding Shinigami—no changes on them—but when he looked toward Tanimoto's tent, he saw a red silhouette inside!

 …?

Not good!

Is it Tanimoto, or someone near him?

What does red mean?

For a moment, Yoshio's mind was a jumble, but perhaps under the skill's effect, he quickly sorted himself out.

He sighed softly and stood up.

Satoru Fujita watched Yoshio head toward the tent and said, "Yoshio, it's not time to switch shifts yet!"

 "I know. I've just got something to do."

 Yoshio reached the tent and spoke softly. "Tanimoto, are you in there?"

After a moment, Tanimoto's voice came from inside.

 "I am. Yoshio? Do you need something?"

 Yoshio lifted the flap and went in.

Inside were seven or eight Shinigami; especially beside Tanimoto sat one Shinigami glowing red.

 Yoshio sighed and said to that Shinigami, "Kawai-kun? Oh no—what should I be calling you now?"

After months of friendly interaction, Yoshio knew every Shinigami in the 5th Division by name.

Kawai was a young man—he'd joined even later than Yoshio, only three years in the 5th. He looked fair and clean-cut. Hearing Yoshio's words, he put on a puzzled look.

 Tanimoto was confused; he looked at Kawai, then at Yoshio. "Yoshio, what nonsense are you talking about?"

But in a flash, Kawai drew his Zanpakutō and slashed at Tanimoto!

It was too quick, too sudden—and Tanimoto would never expect a squad member beside him to strike!

But just as the blade was about to pierce his scarf and chest, Yoshio moved.

With a single flash step he appeared before Kawai, his Zanpakutō already swinging.

In an instant, the blade cut across Kawai's throat!

Splurt!

A jet of blood sprayed from Kawai's neck, spattering the tent!

 "?!"

Gasping, Tanimoto stared at Kawai's body dying right before him and panted out, "W-what… what is going on?!"

 Yoshio didn't answer; he looked at Kawai's corpse.

The next moment, Kawai showed a grotesque smile!

Chapter 18: Permanently Acquiring Special Beam Cannon!

The smile was unnervingly grotesque—Kawai's mouth stretched almost to his ears!

His body quickly turned greenish-blue, even blotched with red on his face!

Kawai was clearly dead, yet in a harsh, heavily distorted voice he said, "Yohio Kamado! I won't let you go! I'll stay by your side—you can't escape!"

As he spoke, a red mass wriggled out of Kawai's body. Yoshio immediately slashed it, but the two chunks of red flesh squirmed like earthworms into the ground and fled!

 "What… what the hell is that?!"

 Tanimoto was startled; the other Shinigami panicked too. They never imagined the Kawai who'd been with them so long was a monster!

 Yoshio's face stayed calm—he already knew Kawai's true identity.

Metastacia!

Because Kawai had manifested a soul ability identical to the one Yoshio saw in Metastacia back in the Rukongai.

 ["Parasitize: Merge into another's body; when the host is weakened, seize control of the body."]

He had seen this soul ability in Metastacia in West Rukongai, and now he saw the same in Kawai inside the tent.

What puzzled Yoshio was that he should have pierced its brain with Special Beam Cannon and killed it.

Did Aizen pick up this trash, recycle it, and modify Metastacia?

Kawai must have been parasitized only after entering the tent; otherwise Yoshio would have seen the soul ability before.

What modifications did Aizen make to Metastacia?

By now, the commotion had drawn people from outside.

 "What happened?!"

Satoru Fujita anxiously flipped open the flap and saw Kawai lying in a pool of blood.

 Tanimoto had regained his composure. "Kawai was parasitized by a Hollow. Go notify everyone—there's a Hollow that can parasitize our souls!"

 "What?!"

Fujita and the Shinigami behind him went pale, while Yoshio added, "I just cut that Hollow in two, but both halves retained consciousness and escaped. I suspect it can split itself."

 "The more you attack it, the more it splits, and the more hosts it can parasitize!"

Fujita and Tanimoto's faces turned ashen. They hurried out, and at that moment Ichimaru Gin arrived.

He still wore that relaxed smile and perpetual slitted eyes. "What's the matter?"

 Tanimoto quickly explained what happened.

Everyone looked to Yoshio. Ichimaru asked,

 "Yoshio-kun, may I ask how you noticed something was wrong with Kawai-kun?"

 "Well…" Yoshio smiled mysteriously.

 "It's my Zanpakutō's ability."

Whatever his power was, he could just attribute it to his Zanpakutō.

 "What? Yoshio, you can already release your Zanpakutō?!"

 "Wouldn't it be stranger if I couldn't? I'm a 9th Seat now—what seated officer can't release their Zanpakutō?"

 "Then…" Ichimaru Gin looked at him. "Can you tell us your Zanpakutō's ability?"

 "This…"

 Yoshio paused, then said, "Sorry, it's a bit special, so I don't intend to disclose it."

It's normal for Shinigami to conceal their abilities, though each Shinigami is obligated to register with someone who truly has authority in the Gotei 13.

In other words, you can hide it, but at least the Captain or Captain-Commander should know.

Once they return, Yoshio will have to report his ability to his Captain or the Captain-Commander.

Some abilities really shouldn't be spread, lest they cause panic or weaken the ability itself.

Ichimaru Gin looked intrigued, patted Yoshio's shoulder, and said,

 "How interesting. Looks like whether we make it back alive depends on you."

 "That's overstating it—but I'll do my best."

 Yoshio replied softly.

Ichimaru smiled faintly and turned.

 "Keep a close watch outside. Don't let any Hollows infiltrate!"

Watching him leave, Yoshio exhaled.

By now, Tanimoto understood that Yoshio had just saved his life. His favorability toward Yoshio instantly hit 80—meaning Yoshio permanently acquired ["Special Beam Cannon."]

This discovery delighted Yoshio—wasn't this the moment he risked himself to save Tanimoto for?!

 [Special Beam Cannon] is quite powerful!

 Yoshio severely lacked offensive tools, even though right now, thanks to [Game Master], he had gained great strength.

Yes, [Game Master] allows him to pick up and master games quickly; naturally, it grants him power to contend with the BOSS within this game Aizen created.

It's like applying a buff—this buff not only lets him detect Metastacia's traces, it also boosts his stats.

Speed, strength, defense, reaction—all enhanced within this "game."

So Yoshio was very strong; he felt his base combat abilities alone had reached Lieutenant level.

And now, with [Special Beam Cannon], he was even stronger.

He said to Tanimoto, "Tanimoto, that Hollow parasitizes souls, so we must be careful not to let ourselves be parasitized."

 "I'll say something unpleasant: if an ordinary Shinigami is controlled, it might not be disastrous.

 "But if one of us seated officers is parasitized, it could cause heavy casualties!"

 Tanimoto had rich combat experience; he quickly caught on and nodded.

 "You're right. Here's the plan: since you can identify the parasitic Hollow, I, Fujita, and Tanaka will stick close to you."

Tanaka is the 5th Seat of the 5th Division—Kohei Tanaka—whose soul ability is Fireball.

 Yoshio was also interested in his soul ability.

He agreed with Tanimoto's plan.

Soon Tanimoto gathered the two and explained his idea.